We’ve continued to explore the question of “Who really discovered America?” We learned about the Vikings and Leif Ericson. Did you know that Leif Erikson actually arrived in America from Europe almost 500 years before Columbus did? But, we don’t celebrate Leif Erikson day! That’s probably because the Vikings had been banished to Iceland and Greenland because Leif’s father had a hot temper. Also, the Vikings were fierce warriors, and didn’t really get along well with other countries. So, it’s not like they’d be excited to share their discovery with their enemies.
Columbus came to “The New World” in 1492. It was an expedition that took bravery, but NOT because everybody thought the world was flat and he’d fall over the edge. Most people knew the world was round during Columbus’s time, but they didn’t know that a huge land mass lay to the west between Europe and Asia. They were sure that Columbus would starve to death before he could reach Asia. Columbus decided to try anyway, and when he arrived in the Bahamas, he thought he was in India. Another explorer, Amerigo Vespucci, started to realize that it wasn’t India, but a whole new place. He began adding to his navigation maps. That’s why North and South America are named after him!
Columbus came to “The New World” in 1492. It was an expedition that took bravery, but NOT because everybody thought the world was flat and he’d fall over the edge. Most people knew the world was round during Columbus’s time, but they didn’t know that a huge land mass lay to the west between Europe and Asia. They were sure that Columbus would starve to death before he could reach Asia. Columbus decided to try anyway, and when he arrived in the Bahamas, he thought he was in India. Another explorer, Amerigo Vespucci, started to realize that it wasn’t India, but a whole new place. He began adding to his navigation maps. That’s why North and South America are named after him!
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